Nicolas Roche alongside world champion Rui Costa on the final Jenkin Road climb of stage 2 of the Tour de France (Photo: Stefano Sirotti)
Nicolas Roche has revealed his crash yesterday was more serious than it looked on our TV screens, with the Irishman flying over the handlebars as his squad and the Team Sky train were leading the bunch.
And while the spill was not connected to spectators that lined the route getting too close to the riders, Roche said at times people were getting far too close. He urged them to be mindful of the damage they would do to themselves and the riders if they took somebody off their bike.
“I don't think they realise the damage a bike is going to do to them at 50kph,” Roche wrote in his Irish Independent Tour Diary of those spectators venturing too far into the road.
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“We're not made out of rubber and you're talking about a couple of broken ribs at least.
“The ones holding phones or cameras and people who turn around after the first rider goes by are the worst. They take an extra step into the road and look the opposite direction, forgetting there are 190 guys on his wheel.”
In the same diary, which will appear in the Irish Independent every day both in print and online, Roche described his crash with 65km remaining yesterday as the cat 2 ascent of Holme Moss approached.
He said as Team Sky was at the front keeping Chris Froome out of trouble and his own Tinkoff Saxo were doing the same with Alberto Contador, he came a cropper.
Sky’s Richie Porte attempted to move from one side of the road to join his team mates’ efforts, but he somehow fell into Roche’s bike, his handlebars locking up Roche’s wheel.
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“With Richie and his bike acting like an anchor to my bike, I just sailed straight over the handlebars and landed on my left shoulder onto the road with two or three others,” he said.
Because he needed a new bike, he was forced to remain at the roadside, with the bunch continuing on. The gap he had to close meant he chased hard for 12km with Astana's Michele Scarponi for company.
His chase was made harder by the fact the commissaire was letting gaps open in the cavalcade, minimising the draft those getting back on could get from the team vehicles.
And while he got back on 2km from the top of Holme Moss and was with the depleted peloton hitting the final climb with just 4km remaining, he was the only one of the team there to help Contador.
He said after riding in the breeze to put the Spaniard in a good position on the very steep final ascent, he just got tailed off with a few others and came home in a small group 14 seconds down.
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